


Adapting

by punkybunny



Series: Little Fangs [4]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Domestic Fluff, Family Fluff, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Parent Tony Stark, Past Child Abuse, Peter Parker Acts Like a Spider, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker has PTSD, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:33:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27067189
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/punkybunny/pseuds/punkybunny
Summary: Tony, Peter, and Pepper have a domestic night in and Tony thinks about how far Peter has come in the last few months.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Pepper Potts, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Little Fangs [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1838425
Comments: 15
Kudos: 330





	Adapting

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry, I haven't updated this series in so long :/ I'm back because I missed this particular Peter a lot lol! This is purely fluffy with a bit of a time skip. I don't think I'll ever really make a story for this series with Peter whump(unless it's a flashback or it's emotional and essential for his growth) because the theme for this series is Peter's healing! He will not be going through it lmao  
> Pls enjoy!! <3

It had been a boring, dreadfully slow day filled with board meetings and way too many coffee breaks. Tony was glad he had Pepper at his side throughout the day, even if she reprimanded him for nodding off. He appreciated her comforting presence among the sea of greying elders droning on about who knows what. He certainly doesn't. He wasn't really paying attention.

Finally, the meetings came to an end, and Tony swiftly darted out, dismissing Pepper's glares. He headed for the compound's lobby, where he had some groceries delivered, as well as a couple boxes of pizza from a small Italian restaurant in the city. 

Tony had been looking forward to tonight since the day began. It was another thought that kept him going and reminded him to push through. Peter was excited to finally watch Finding Nemo with Tony since his favorite nature documentaries as of late had been aquatic themed. The teen was for some reason obsessed with animals of every sort, but especially the colorful fish that lived in large communities under the ocean. 

Tony shot Pepper a quick text informing her that he was heading over to their penthouse and that she needed to hurry up if she wanted them to save her any pizza.

When he arrived at his floor, he noticed that the lights were dimmed, most likely by Peter's request. The boy was sensitive to bright lights. There was the faint hum of the TV, the volume lowered considerably, and the noise of pages of a book turning.

Tony peered up - an action that was becoming very common for him - and saw Peter curled up in a flannel on the ceiling, his nose stuffed in a Percy Jackson book. 

A chuckle was suppressed. Recently, Tony bought that series of books for Peter, because it was at the boy's current reading level and Tony heard it used to be all the rage. The man was trying to educate Peter with the help of Pepper. It was difficult to get Peter to read or write, the subjects never interested him all that much. Not in the way that math and science did. Peter absolutely perked up when math worksheets were set in front of him, equations and theories clicking easily in his mind. But English. Peter was bored out of his mind when it came to English.

So Tony was glad to see the boy so enthralled by the Percy Jackson books. The man didn't recognise the one he was currently reading. Was he already onto the next book? Tony felt a proudness swell up in his chest. 

The teen in question immediately noticed Tony's presence, grinning wide. He carefully stuck his book to a web for later, and swung over to the older man. His sock-clad feet expertly landed on the ground, and before Tony even had a chance to blink, he had an armful of spider kid. 

Tony chuckled into brown curls. The kid had been much more confident in showing physical affection since The Bite Incident, and Tony was surprised to find that he didn't mind. Affection came naturally to him when it was with Peter. "Did you miss me, bud?"

Peter nodded against his chest. "You were gone forever!" Then his attention was elsewhere, his nose twitching. "Pizza? ...And what's that?"

The teen was pointing to the grocery bag Tony was carrying. It was full of ice cream, which the kid hadn't tried yet and Tony was excited to see how he would like it. Peter had an affinity for sweet food so the man expected the desert to be a hit. 

"It's a surprise, Pete. You can have some after we finish dinner." Tony ruffled his brown locks and set the groceries into the freezer for later. As soon as the boxes of pizza were opened, Peter was lunging at them with grabby fingers. Tony huffed out a laugh and gently pushed his hands away. "Alright, alright, let's get plates out first and then we can get started with the movie. Okay, kiddo?"

Peter lit up at the mention of the movie, the kid rushing to the couch and looking back at him expectantly, blankets already bunched around him. Tony got the message and after their food was plated(Peter's pizza stacked high because of his fast metabolism), he settled down next to his ward. 

"FRIDAY, could you please play Finding Nemo?" Peter politely asked, looking up towards the ceiling. 

The pair quickly scarfed down their pizza as the movie played in the dim room. Peter would speak up in the middle of scenes to talk to Tony about his book(apparently he was now on the third when Tony last saw him just starting the second) and the man would nod and pretend he was following along with the weird plots. 

Pepper came back midway through the movie - probably after finishing up her paperwork for the day - and plopped down on an armrest. Peter didn't so much as flinch, just smiled and told Pepper what she missed of the movie so far. 

Tony felt that unfamiliar feeling of proudness warm up his chest again. The teen had been making so much progress lately. He was clever and endlessly curious, easily learning new concepts and keeping up with his studies. He was now very comfortable with Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy. Occasionally, Vision or the SHIELD agents would visit, and that startled him, but he still put in the effort to not let the fear control him. 

Tony was slowly trying to help Peter open up about what Hydra did to him, while making it incredibly clear that it was not for the sake of experimenting on him, but it was for Peter's own sake. Tony wanted the boy to know he could get help, and in fact, he should get help. He had introduced the enhanced to a therapist once, but it didn't work too well. The lady just wanted to understand what Peter went through, but all of her questions were bringing back too many memories and the teen had lashed out in fear. So, yeah, therapy was going to have to be a slow, cautious process. 

But now, here he was. Sitting down on a couch with his barriers down, and earlier he had been walking around on the floor, unbothered. Peter was now aware that there wasn't a constant threat out there and that every once and awhile, he could let down his guard and relax. Tony was so immensely happy for him. The more time he spent with Peter, getting to know him, and helping him, the more he began to imagine what it would be like if he stayed here. With Tony and Pepper. With Happy and Rhodey. A family. 

Tony didn't let himself dwell on that thought for too long. The present is what was most important. They would cross that road when they got to it. 

Jolted out of his thoughts, he felt a weight against his side. Tony turned to see a head of curly hair resting on his shoulder, slow, even breaths escaping Peter's lips. The man felt a smile make its way onto his face and he made to whisper to Pepper, but found her slumped back, asleep as well. She had had a long day. The credits of the movie were just then starting up, so Tony whispered for FRIDAY to turn the TV off. 

"Hey, Pete," Tony murmured, reaching a hand up to gently pat the teen's shoulder. "C'mon, Petey, ice cream time." No response.

Tony sighed. He shook the boy even more, hoping not to startle him awake. Yeah, that didn't go too well last time. "Peteeeerrr." 

A bleary eyed face peered up at the older man, and Peter huffed, snuggling back up to go back to sleep. "Le' m' sleep…," he slurred. 

Well, he asked for it. Tony turned and brought a hand to Peter's side, wiggling his fingers. The boy's eyes immediately shot open, a giggle slipping past his lips. Tony grinned and continued tickling the teen, as he wiggled and squeaked, trying to escape his guardian's grasp. "Okay, okay, I'm up, ahaha Mr. Stark!" 

Tony stopped when he heard that, letting the boy continue to giggle quietly as he got up and went to grab their desert. He checked back to make sure Pepper was still snoozing, and she was. He would have felt bad waking her up for no reason. 

Peter hopped up out of the couch, hurrying over to Tony to catch a glimpse of what the surprise was. "What is it?" 

"Well, my spider boy, this is called 'ice cream'. It's a sweet, tasty dessert that comes in many different flavors. I thought today I'd just introduce you to vanilla." He grabbed a spoon for each of them and after having a bite himself, he held out one for the boy. 

Peter eyed the spoon for a second, before ultimately deciding he trusted Tony and taking a big bite, completely sinking his teeth into the frozen dessert. Tony cringed as he watched this, mentally preparing himself the reaction that came next.

The enhanced teen recoiled and shrunk in on himself, shivers wracking his frame. He swallowed the spoonful and gasped out, "Mr. Stark! It's so cold!" 

Tony chuckled, reaching over to ruffle the boy's hair. He wouldn't admit it, but he found the teen's response kind of endearing. "That's because you aren't supposed to bite down on it with your teeth, kid!" He paused as he watched the boy shiver once or twice more. "But did you like the flavor?" 

Peter glowered at him for a second, before pouting and murmuring, "Yeah." He silently held out his spoon and Tony barked out a laugh as he filled it up with more ice cream. Peter then began the agonizingly slow process of eating the treat, trying to avoid it directly touching his teeth. 

The pair continued eating ice cream out of the container, laughing and teasing each other. When Pepper woke up she halfheartedly chided them, but ultimately got a spoon for herself and joined in. 

Tony would never regret rescuing Peter, and deciding to bring the boy back to his penthouse with him. Tony couldn't be happier with this little family he was a part of. A genius billionaire, his CEO/fiancé, and a mutated spider-teen. Tony wouldn't change this for the world.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much! <3 If anyone has any ideas for this story then maybe I'll look at them for inspiration(but I'm not taking requests lol)!
> 
> ALSO!! I added a drawing I made of Peter from this au to the end notes of Instincts!! Y'all should check it out, I'm rly proud of it :))


End file.
